A French couple did when they visited the Italian island of Sardinia a week ago. Much to their dismay that the sand they took was secured, and now they face as long as 6 years in jail.

The couple filled 14 bottles with 40kg of white sand

The French couple, in their 40s, filled 14 plastic bottles with the 40kg of white sand as “trinkets” from Chia shoreline in southern Sardinia.

The Italian paper Corriere Della Sera detailed that the couple put the jugs in the storage compartment of their SUV.

They at that point took a stab at boarding a ship, headed for Toulon, France, from the northern city of Porto Torres.

In the interim, Italy’s law implementation office Guardia di Finanza, while directing routine keeps checks on vehicles holding on to board the ship, detected the containers loaded up with sand, and captured the couple.

They currently face jail from one to six years, and furthermore, a fine of up to €3,000 (Rs. 2.4 lakh).

Why it is a crime to take send from beaches?

In the event that you’re pondering this is only a silly law, there’s a motivation behind why it was done. Lakhs of guests crowd the pleasant white shorelines in Italy every year, and a considerable lot of them would do what the French couple did. Specialists report that guests remove huge amounts of sand, seashells, and so on., from Italian shorelines every year, hurting their existence. This prompts environmental degradation.

White sand teft is a growing concern for Italy

Over Sardinia’s shorelines, burglary of white sand and shakes is really normal. Guests take the white shoreline sand and sell it on eBay. Specialists affirm there’s an illicit market for this on the web.

Sand thieves are normally caught in the act at airplane terminals during inquiries. In August 2017, a law was acquainted with making it unlawful for travelers to take sand, stones or seashells from Sardinian shorelines.